My Guy Barbaro - by Edgar Prado & John Eisenberg (Paperback)

About the Book

For fans of "Marley and Me" and "The Horse Whisperer" comes this personal and heartwarming memoir about the most celebrated thoroughbred in recent memory. 16-page color-photo insert.

From the Back Cover

A new superstar appeared on the American sports landscape in the spring of 2006. Barbaro, a three-year-old racehorse, won the Kentucky Derby by the largest margin of victory in sixty years, stirring talk of a possible Triple Crown. But in the opening yards of the Preakness Stakes two weeks later, the magnificent animal suffered a catastrophic leg injury that ended his un-defeated career and left him fighting for his life.

One of the world's top jockeys, Edgar Prado rode Barbaro to glory and then stood beside him for months as the horse valiantly struggled to survive. My Guy Barbaro is the true story of the dream that carried Prado from an impoverished childhood in Lima, Peru, to the winner's circles of the world's greatest racetracks--and is the heartwarming account of his love for a beautiful, talented, irreplaceable teammate.

Review Quotes

"Edgar Prado's unadorned prose beautifully captures the trajectory of two lives: his own and that of the horse he would come to describe as a 'friend, teammate and hero.' After reading this book, it is difficult to predict who you will love more: Prado or his beloved mount, Barbaro." - Susan Richards, New York Times bestselling author of CHOSEN BY A HORSE Susan Richards, New York Times bestselling author of CHOSEN BY A HORSE
"Told firsthand by Edgar Prado, the hardest-working jockey in the game, My Guy Barbaro takes you on an emotional roller coaster ride that will make you feel like you were there with Barbaro every step of the way. I couldn't put this book down." - Gary Stevens, three-time Kentucky Derby Winning Hall of Fame Jockey, NBC Sports Analyst
"This inside look at how a racehorse and jockey communicate and care for each other is at once heartbreaking and harrowing; it chronicles the relationship of two of the sport's most compelling figures -- Barbaro and Prado. Their tale is wonderfully told, and makes you understand why people love horses." - Joe Drape, author of BLACK MAESTRO and THE RACE FOR THE TRIPLE CROWN
In this indispensable tribute, Edgar Prado illuminates why Barbaro touched so many. Together with John Eisenberg, one of our finest chroniclers of the sport of kings, Prado delivers the definitive life of the thoroughbred who, had he stayed healthy, likely would have been as beloved in triumph as he was, instead, in tragedy. - Jeremy Schaap, New York Times bestselling author of CINDERELLA MAN and TRIUMPH
"Barbaro's jockey Edgar Prado takes readers deep inside the world of horseracing, onto the horse's back in the heat of a race, and into the intensive care unit where Barbaro inspired America by fighting courageously for his life...This memoir delivers a full spectrum of emotion, from triumph to tragedy." - Horse Illustrated
""One of the best jockey biographies ever published...Far more than a rags-to-riches fairytale, it is a celebration of an extraordinary life cut short, told from the perspective of one who knew and cherished that life well...There is genuine humility in the telling of this tale, about a great racehorse and the jockey who guided him to that greatness." " - Thoroughbred Times
"This remembrance from Barbaro's jockey, Edgar Prado, stands out as a valuable addition to the historical record of an undefeated but ultimately ill-fated racehorse. In addition to his own inspiring life story, Prado offers his unique perspective on Barbaro's eye-opening triumph in the 2006 Kentucky Derby and the unfortunate events of the Preakness Stakes two weeks later." - Philadelphia Inquirer
"Barbaro was one tough horse - winning the Kentucky Derby by 6 1/2 lengths. But it was his courageous, ultimately futile battle after a horrific leg injury in the Preakness that really captured the nation. Veteran jockey Prado touchingly takes readers inside racing and his bond with Barbaro." - New York Post
"A moving testament to the power a sport can have on both its fans and its participants." - American Way
"My Guy Barbaro is good, fast reading because it's clear that Prado is not only a great jockey but also a real horseman, who can take in a horse's strengths and weaknesses at a glance, and figure out what makes it tick. He's even better at describing what makes a jockey tick, the strategy of riding a race, how to get the most out of a horse, and the ways a horse and jockey can bond as a racing team. Prado makes the reader realize how well he and Barbaro understood each other. Clearly, Barbaro was a great horse." - Michael Korda, Washington Post Book World